Tag: Breaking News

Strikeforce Full Fight Video Highlights from the Promotion’s Final Fight Card

Strikeforce closed its doors on Saturday after delivering another night of entertaining fights.  The promotion had its ups and downs over the years, but when fight night rolled around, fans usually walked away with a satisfying experience.  T…

Strikeforce closed its doors on Saturday after delivering another night of entertaining fights.  The promotion had its ups and downs over the years, but when fight night rolled around, fans usually walked away with a satisfying experience.  The promotion’s final night was no exception.

On paper, all of the main card fights had a pronounced favorite and underdog and most of the fights ended with the favorite walking away with victory. The one fight that didn’t end as expected was the evening’s main event. 

Nate Marquardt was a heavy favorite to retain his Strikeforce welterweight title in that bout and it was expected that he would then waltz into the UFC and make a run at that promotion’s welterweight crown. Marquardt‘s opponent, Tarec Saffiedine, had other plans.

Saffiedine used heavy leg kicks to make sure that Marquardt wouldn’t be walking, much less waltzing anywhere following the contest.  By the end of their five-round contest, Marquardt‘s leg was a bruised and swollen mess, looking like something wild dogs would walk past without a second glance. Yes, it was that ugly.

In the evening’s co-main event, Daniel Cormier did what was expected and rolled over Dion Staring. However, after the fight, he did something that wasn’t expected, calling out UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones during his post-fight in-cage interview, saying that he would kick Jones’ ass sometime this fall.

Check out the video for highlights from all of Saturday’s main card fights and make sure to turn up the volume when they get to the Saffiedine highlights—those kicks were ugly.

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Strikeforce Results: What We Learned from Nate Marquardt vs. Tarec Saffiedine

Strikeforce has delivered plenty of action to fans over the course of their seven-year run and on Saturday night, the welterweight division was on display in the promotion’s final fight.Although oddsmakers didn’t seem to give much hope to the underdogs…

Strikeforce has delivered plenty of action to fans over the course of their seven-year run and on Saturday night, the welterweight division was on display in the promotion’s final fight.

Although oddsmakers didn’t seem to give much hope to the underdogs on Saturday night, title contender Tarec Saffiedine showed fans why you can’t put too much stock in what Las Vegas thinks.

Through five rounds of action, Saffiedine used superior speed and conditioning to produce an all-out assault on champion Nate Marquardt.

With his conditioning failing him, Marquardt wasn’t quick enough to avoid the seemingly endless supply of leg kicks that Saffiedine delivered round after round.

It was a much-deserved exclamation point in the final chapter of Strikeforce.

 

What we’ll remember about this fight
 

The emergence of Tarec Saffiedine as a new star in MMA. Spending much of the fight chopping down Marquardt with devastating leg kicks, Saffiedine painted a red and purple canvas on the thigh of “Nate the Great.”

 

What we learned about Nate Marquardt

That the weight cut might be too much for the former middleweight contender. In the third round, Marquardt continued to breathe deeply as he continued slowing down.

Additionally, we learned that Marquardt apparently forgot how to defend leg kicks. When he was eating 15 of them in Round 4, it became easy to confuse Marquardt‘s thigh with ground beef.

 

What we learned about Tarec Saffiedine

Despite his lack of notoriety and underdog status, he is deserving of competing with the best welterweights on the planet. The fact that he was able to pick apart a seasoned veteran like Marquardt is impressive enough, but getting to enter the UFC as the final Strikeforce welterweight champion puts that statement in bold.

 

What’s next for Nate Marquardt

With connections to Tristar Gym and a quality name, Marquardt will likely be offered a UFC contract. However, that is far from a given considering the unceremonious release that Nate suffered in 2011.

If he arrives in the UFC later this year, Marquardt should not be awarded a bout against a contender. This loss drops Nate considerably in the ranks. Perhaps the ill-fated Nate Marquardt vs. Rick Story fight could see the light of day after all.  

 

What’s next for Tarec Saffiedine

Entering the UFC as the reigning Strikeforce champion is a major feather in his cap, although Saffiedine should not be thrust immediately into the title scene. After all, champion Georges St-Pierre is currently scheduled to meet Nick Diaz before likely defending his belt against the winner of Johny Hendricks vs. Jake Ellenberger.

A fight with a ranked opponent is a must. Although I don’t care for his chances, perhaps a fight against the winner of Jon Fitch vs. Demian Maia is in order.

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Daniel Cormier Calls Out UFC Champion Jon Jones: “I’m Going to Kick His Ass”

Daniel Cormier won in style at the final Strikeforce card on Saturday night, but he dropped a few bombshells in his post-fight interview.Just minutes after a second-round TKO stoppage against overmatched opponent Dion Staring, the Oklahoma crowd looked…

Daniel Cormier won in style at the final Strikeforce card on Saturday night, but he dropped a few bombshells in his post-fight interview.

Just minutes after a second-round TKO stoppage against overmatched opponent Dion Staring, the Oklahoma crowd looked on as Cormier revealed two huge pieces of MMA news.

Cormier is set to fight Frank Mir at UFC on Fox 7 on April 20.

Moreover, the American Kickboxing Academy star vowed to move down a weight class and take away the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship from current title-holder Jon Jones:

Right now, I’m telling you. April 20 on Fox. I signed my UFC contract. Frank Mir, you and me. Let’s do it.

I’m going to let Jon Jones defend his belt on April 27 and then I’m going to kick his ass in the fall.

Cormier is currently among the top 10 heavyweights in MMA, and should be similarly ranked if he does indeed move down to 205 pounds. He’ll come into the UFC with an impressive 11-0 record that includes dominant wins over the likes of Antonio Silva and Josh Barnett.

Cormier was originally scheduled to face Mir as part of the main card in Strikeforce’s final event, but Mir pulled out of the match due to an injury in training.

Although Cormier currently fights at heavyweight, his friend and training partner is none other than UFC champion Cain Velasquez.

Less than a month ago, Velasquez regained the heavyweight title at UFC 155 from Junior dos Santos, the very same man who took the belt from him at the inaugural UFC on Fox event in November 2011. Members of the American Kickboxing Academy are well- known for their refusal to fight each other, so as long as Velasquez holds the belt at heavyweight, Cormier is unlikely to challenge for it.

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Daniel Cormier Announces Fight with Frank Mir; Challenges Jon Jones in Fall

Some fighters are hesitant to call out an opponent in their post-fight interview. Strikeforce heavyweight Daniel Cormier took it upon himself to call out two.Immediately after pummeling Dion Staring at the final Strikeforce event, the AKA fighter addre…

Some fighters are hesitant to call out an opponent in their post-fight interview. Strikeforce heavyweight Daniel Cormier took it upon himself to call out two.

Immediately after pummeling Dion Staring at the final Strikeforce event, the AKA fighter addressed a long-rumored fight with Frank Mir at UFC on Fox 7.

“Right now, I’m telling you. April 20 on Fox, I signed my UFC contract. Frank Mir, you and me. Let’s do it.”

However, the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix winner wasn’t done there.

Former UFC champion Pat Miletich entered the cage and asked Cormier about a potential drop to light heavyweight.

“I’m gonna let Jon defend his belt April 27 and I’m gonna kick his ass in the Fall!” 

This call-out is quite presumptuous. By calling out Jones for his second UFC appearance, Cormier is discounting Frank Mir as an opponent.

While few would suggest that Mir would be the betting favorite in that matchup, the fact remains that he is a two-time UFC champion who holds wins over some of the best heavyweights in history.

Additionally, this presumes that the winner of February’s UFC 157 matchup between Lyoto Machida and Dan Henderson does not receive the next shot at the UFC light heavyweight championship. 

In terms of his potential new home at 205 pounds, Cormier has talked about cutting down for much of the last year. After all, Cormier wants to be a world champion and with teammate Cain Velasquez holding the UFC heavyweight championship, a new weight class is the only option.

Is the undefeated Cormier biting off more than he can chew by challenging Jon Jones? After all, Jones also has an impressive wrestling pedigree and possesses a 13.5-inch reach advantage in that matchup.

Stay tuned to Bleacher Report MMA for more on this story as it breaks.

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Strikeforce Results: What We Learned from Daniel Cormier vs. Dion Staring

Top-five world heavyweight Daniel Cormier took the stage at the final Strikeforce event when he took on Dutchman Dion Staring. Many were not willing to step up and fight Cormier at this event, especially on short notice, but Staring showed his courage….

Top-five world heavyweight Daniel Cormier took the stage at the final Strikeforce event when he took on Dutchman Dion Staring. Many were not willing to step up and fight Cormier at this event, especially on short notice, but Staring showed his courage.

Staring toughed out the fight with Cormier, but in the end, Cormier was too much for “The Soldier,” winning via TKO.

Here is what we learned from this fight.

 

What We’ll Remember About This Fight: 

It’s a tie between Staring’s heart and Cormier’s call out of Frank Mir and Jon Jones.

Everybody assumed that Cormier was going to dominate this fight, and he did. Staring showed that he is a tough dude and took a fight nobody wanted, while Cormier imposed his will and goes into the UFC with his unblemished record.

After the fight, Cormier called out Frank Mir for the Fox card in April, as well as Jon Jones in the fall.  

 

What We Learned About Dion Staring:

He doesn’t give up. It took a referee to step in and stop the fight, as Staring would not surrender. He has competed at light heavyweight in the past and had a lot of belly fat in this fight.

Therefore, Staring should try and make a run at light heavyweight. He is obviously a solid striker and could be an interesting guy to have in the UFC.

That is, if he gets an offer to come over.

 

What We Learned About Daniel Cormier: 

We learned nothing about Cormier we didn’t know. He is a dominant wrestler whose striking is getting better.

 

What’s Next for Staring:

I am assuming Staring will be let go after this fight, even though he should get at least one fight in the UFC as a light heavyweight.

If the UFC does surprisingly bring Staring over, he should fight Kyle Kingsbury (a teammate of Cormier) at 205.

 

What’s Next for Cormier:

He asked for it, and he should get it. Give him former UFC champ Frank Mir.

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Strikeforce Results: What We Learned from Josh Barnett vs. Nandor Guelmino

On Saturday night, Josh Barnett returned to Strikeforce for the organization’s final event. With only two heavyweights on the roster, Strikeforce had to scrape the bottom of the barrel to find an opponent for Barnett without borrowing talent from …

On Saturday night, Josh Barnett returned to Strikeforce for the organization’s final event. With only two heavyweights on the roster, Strikeforce had to scrape the bottom of the barrel to find an opponent for Barnett without borrowing talent from the UFC.

The man they landed on was completely unheralded Nandor Guelmino. 

Odds makers had Barnett pegged as a 16-to-1 favorite entering this contest and rightfully so. “The Warmaster” completely steamrolled Guelmino and secured a choke to end this fight 2:10 into the first round.

 

What we’ll remember about this fight

The fact that it was a ridiculous mismatch. Barnett was dominant from start to finish, despite having the flu on fight week. There is no excuse for this fight taking place in the first place, let alone when you consider that it’s been on the books for months.

 

What we learned about Josh Barnett

Absolutely nothing. This is a former world champion with nearly 40 professional fights. Taking on a 37-year-old fighter who had never been in a major organization, Barnett did exactly what he was expected to do by steamrolling his opponent.

 

What we learned about Nandor Guelmino

Let’s be honest here. Aside from potentially seeing his name in a fighter database, until Guelmino signed on for this fight, you had probably never heard his name. All that we learned about Guelmino in this fight is the fact that he exists.

 

What’s next for Josh Barnett

The UFC, hopefully. There is no reason to believe that Dana White is going to hold a grudge from more than a decade ago. Barnett has won nine of his last 10 fights which mostly came against notables.

Hopefully, Barnett is matched up up with a fellow grapplers like Big Nog, Fabricio Werdum or Frank Mir in 2013.

 

What’s next for Nandor Guelmino

Back to the independent circuit. It’s fairly obvious that Guelmino was signed on strictly so Barnett could appear on this card without rematching Cormier. 

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